On day 2, ‘rebel’ disciples barge into Osho resort; police deny using force

Police said that on Wednesday afternoon, more than 250 protesters forced their way into the Osho International Meditation Centre (OIMC). A day earlier, the ashram management had allowed protesting Osho followers, wearing the contentious `sanyas mala’, to enter the premises to avoid a law and order situation.

Policemen carry a ‘rebel’ Osho disciple inside a police truck in Pune on Wednesday. (Express photo by Arul Horizon)

As per the ashram’s rules, the wearing of the mala, which the management claims Rajneesh himself had “dropped” later in his life, is not allowed.

“After our intervention on Tuesday, the followers were allowed to enter the ashram campus with ‘malas’ but today they entered forcibly. A man who was not a part of the followers’ group became violent and tried to manhandle police personnel, forcing the police to use force to evict him,” said Smartana Patil, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone II).

Swami Chaitanya Keerti, one of the protesters, said they had nothing to do with this man. “During the commotion, a man who is said to be an Indian-origin US citizen, who has not received ‘diksha’ (initiation), might have said something out of aggression and was whisked away by police,” he said, adding that the protesters did not know him. Koregaon police booked the man under Section 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) of the IPC.

Policemen drag a ‘rebel’ Osho disciple after some followers barged into the Osho resort in Pune, (Express photo by Arul Horizon)

Speaking to The Indian Express, Swami Chaitanya Keerti said, “Over 250 sannyasins sought to enter the ashram. They were all wearing the ‘mala’ given in ‘diksha’ by Osho himself. It is an integral part of our life and signifies the master-disciple bond. However, the management refused to allow us to enter.”

Another offence was registered against the protesters who entered the ashram forcibly for allegedly manhandling its manager, said Senior Inspector Vinayak Vetal of Koregaon Park police station. “We have registered an FIR under relevant IPC sections, including rioting. Five to seven people are named and the remaining are unidentified,” he added.

The protesting Osho disciples claimed in a press release in the evening that after entering the ashram, they sat in the Buddha Grove area, sang kirtans and did not cause any trouble. But the ashram management “coaxed” police to use force. “…it is explicitly clear that this disproportionate fear of Osho mala is not out of their obedience to Osho’s instructions as they claim, rather it is a part of their conspiracy to mint money off the prime real estate of Koregaon Park in Pune,” the group alleged.